Blog - The Happy Housewife™

Fun School Project: Bird Feeder Experiment

We started a fun and frugal school project this week. We are studying birds this year in science, but even if you aren’t this would be a fun project to work on.

First we hung 3 different bird feeders.

Sorry, I didn’t take a picture of the last feeder (it is a hummingbird feeder).
Then the boys drew a picture of each feeder on a piece of paper.

Over the next several weeks we will watch the feeders and keep track of which birds come to each feeder. The boys can either draw a picture of the bird under the correct feeder or write the name of the bird.

This experiment has several benefits. First, the boys will be able to learn more about birds. They will identify birds as well as learn to draw them. They will also find out which birds are attracted to the different feeders. If they find a favorite bird they will know which feeder to watch closely.

If you don’t have a bird feeder you can make one with a pine cone and peanut butter. You can make another feeder with a juice bottle. These feeders are easy and cheap to make and your kids can help you. My kids love bird watching and this is a great way to make school fun.

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Reusing Homeschool Books

by Toni Herrbach

While visiting a friend last weekend, I learned a money saving homeschool tip. Many moms I know will take their workbooks to Office Depot, have them unbound and then put each page into protective covers. This allows multiple children to use the same workbook. I have always liked this idea, but was too lazy to go to the store and then put 300 + sheets in protectors.

My friend discovered a way to simplify and reuse. She cuts a slit in one page protector and then slides that protector over the page her child is using. The child can then “write in the book” using a dry erase marker. The child writes in one color and the mom corrects in another. The next day the sheet is cleaned off and moved to the next page! Brilliant! I plan on using this with our Wordly Wise and Easy Grammar workbooks this year. With 6 kids this will save our homeschool a significant amount of money on curriculum.

As I was typing this I realized that this page protector would also work great in the kitchen. Just slide the protector over the page in the cookbook you are using. This will keep your recipe clean and stain free.

Boys and Books

by Toni Herrbach

Readers, I need your help. I have a twelve year old son who hates to read! He has struggled with learning disabilities over the years, dyslexia being one of them, and I think all the struggles have led to a complete dislike of the written language.

He and I went out tonight and talked about how we could improve his reading this year. He told me that he didn’t like to read, and especially didn’t like to read stories that are boring. He said he would like to read stories that are exciting and full of adventure.

This is where you come in, I need some good book ideas for boys that are action packed, full of adventure, and guaranteed to keep this guy’s attention for more than five minutes. My only stipulations are the books need to be easy for him to read (about a fifth grade level) and no books about magic (that’s dad’s rule). He is an outdoors type of kid that would rather be hiking, bike riding, or swimming than any thing else. His favorite fiction book is My Side of the Mountain if that helps you learn a little more about his personality.

The boy, doing what he loves to do…

Please leave me your suggestions in the comments section or email me.

Thanks!

School Cubbies

by Toni Herrbach

Since it has been several months since a reader requested an explanation of our school cubbies, I figured it was time to post it, since we are starting school tomorrow.

The Framework- I purchased these unfinished wooden “shelves” at A.C. Moore about a year ago. I either waited until they were on sale or used a coupon to keep the cost around $20 each. Because I have six kids I decided to buy four of the shelves. They come in various heights, but I thought this was best for our family. I stained all but one of the shelves (ran out of time). This was kind of a pain, but they handle a great bit of wear and tear with a coat of the stain/varnish combo.

What they hold- All of our school books and papers for entire year. Almost every cubby is labeled so putting things away is easier. Each child has their own cubby to store school work and books.

In the beginning of the year we have several shelves labeled “future books.” These are books that we will be using this year, but not right now. As the time passes we will turn our “future book” shelves into “completed work” shelves.

There are some books that more than one child uses for school – These books are put in cubbies, labeled “resources”. Common books on these shelves are science, history and bible.

All of our blank paper is kept in one spot- There is one cubby that only stores paper. We have blank paper, printer paper, card stock, lined paper, handwriting paper, and stationary. I also have a large folder of scrap paper. This paper comes from old worksheets and other printed items that we don’t need anymore. There is a limit on how much paper they can use in a day, but that is for another post.

The bins on top of the cubbies hold more resources- One bin is filled with flash cards (all kinds) and the other bin holds math manipulatives. This makes finding small items a snap. The large bin in the middle is “Mom’s bin.” It is one of the few things that didn’t get organized this summer so I am not quite sure what is in it, but usually it holds rulers, sharp objects, stickers, and other items I don’t want my little ones to find.

Purchasing these divided cubbies was one of the best things I have done to organize our homeschool. The kids are responsible for keeping their cubbies organized. Since setting these up we have lost fewer papers, spent less time looking for books, and when evaluation time rolls around finding our completed work is a snap. School cubbies work for us, what works for you? Visit Rocks in My Dryer for more WFMW.

Field Trip Log

by Toni Herrbach

Today I am busy doing my final homeschool planning. I created a homeschool field trip form to log our outings during the school year. I have a pdf version as well as a doc version for those who want to fill it in on their computer rather than write on the form. I also created a field trip brainstorming sheet that I will give to my kids on the first day of school. This will give them the opportunity to have input into our field trips for the coming school year.

Field Trip Log (pdf)

Field Trip Brainstorming Page (pdf)

Schedules and Reading Lists

by Toni Herrbach

This week I am creating reading lists for each child as well as writing our master schedule. The reading lists are below. If you click on the link you should be able to view and download the lists.

Each reading list is comprised of books that I would like my child to read for the school year. Some of the books are mandatory (because they correspond with the curriculum) and others are for fun. My children also read many books that are not on the list, but I use the list as a guide throughout the year.

To create my list, first I look through the curriculum and list the books they must read. Then I consult one of my favorite reference books, Honey for a Childâ€™s Heart. This is a great book for getting ideas for your child. Most of the books recommended in Honey for a Child’s Heart are accompanied by a brief write up, which I find exceptionally valuable. I then visit some of my favorite curriculum websites to borrow from their reading lists. Some of the websites I visit are; Veritas Press, Sonlight, Ambleside Online, Five in a Row, and Total Language Plus. Finally, I search the library catalog for books that my child my be interested in reading. For example, I have one child who is very interested in birds, so I am creating a list of bird books for him to read.

Here are the books lists I have compiled for this school year. These lists will change throughout the year, as I add new books and occasionally delete books.

K/1st Grade

3rd Grade

Upper Elementary

Freshman

Yesterday, I finished creating my 2008 homeschool schedule. I use Managers of their Homes to create a schedule for our daily activities. I am sure this schedule will change many times throughout the year, but this will give you a general idea of what we are doing. You can view the entire schedule here.

I realized after I uploaded this schedule that I might be making a few changes already. We have started bike riding as a family and haven’t decided whether a morning or afternoon ride works best for us.

Free Preschool Activities

by Toni Herrbach

Cutting can be a difficult skill for children to master. I have one child who still does not like to cut things and he is way past the preschool age. To help children learn to cut, start with something other than paper. Let them cut play dough or bread dough to practice holding the scissors. Then graduate to paper-like items such as foam (you can get these sheets at all craft stores). One really fun activity you can do with your preschooler is to purchase the foam sheets as well as a container of shapes, animals, or letters. Children can cut the foam sheets and then add the stickers to the foam, which develops their fine motor skills.

One way to get more bang for your buck with tracing worksheets is to have your child trace the lines and then cut the lines. You use less paper and save money. I date the cut sheets and save them in a folder so I can periodically check my preschoolers progress to see if they are improving. In the pictures, my little one using a tracing program I downloaded for free this week from Currclick.

Tracing

Cutting

Gluing

For those of you super observant readers, yes my lefty is cutting with right handed scissors. Do not follow my example. Our little preschooler was so excited to start school that she is using the scissors we have instead of waiting for her left handed scissors to arrive. If you have a lefty, invest in left handed scissors. They might cost a little more but it is worth it for your child.

Another point for my observant readers. I am sure you are all wondering that since this is not a post about gluing, why did I include a picture? Well, my preschooler wanted to glue. I hadn’t planned on gluing today, but preschool is not about a rigid academic schedule of tracing and cutting. If your child wants to deviate from your plan in a productive way, let them! Relax, this is preschool, not college.

Here are a few links to free preschool worksheets.

Printable Tracing Worksheets

More Printable Tracing Worksheets

Great Worksheet for learning colors and numbers 1-10

Patterns Worksheet

If you must simply spend money for preschool curriculum check out the Kumon books. My kids love these workbooks, they have them for cutting, tracing, alphabet and more.

What to Expect from your Preschooler

by Toni Herrbach

I want to preface this post by saying that I am not a big advocate of heavy academics during the early years. I believe that our children learn best from doing and growing in a natural, loving environment, without a lot of academic pressure. That being said, there are some milestones that your preschooler should reach during this time in their lives.

Colors: red, blue, yellow, green, purple, orange, brown, white, black
Shapes: circle, square, rectangle, triangle, diamond, oval, semi-circle, star, crescent
Alphabet Letters: lower case letter identification
Beginning Calendar Work: days of the week, months of the year, today, tomorrow, yesterday (this can be a very difficult concept for kids, you should not expect mastery, just familiarity)
Math: numbers 1-10, counting items
Holidays: Birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July

Physical Development

Run on tip toes
Hop on one foot
Gallop
Begin to skip
Throw a ball overhand
Pump themselves on a swing
Unzipping, unsnapping, unbuttoning
Dress themselves
Cut a line with scissors
Lace their own shoes
Write crude letters

More Preschooler Posts

Energetic Activities

Great Preschool Books and Toys

Messy Fun

Make it Yourself Preschool Activities

Fun and Free Preschool Activities

by Toni Herrbach

My preschoolers are bundles of energy. They usually expend more energy by 10 am than I do in an entire day. Energy is good, if it is correctly channeled. Here are some fun activities that will give your child’s wiggles some worth.

Playing catch with a twist – *Warning, offensive language ahead* I let my children play catch in the house. There are many ways to play catch and learn at the same time. Sit on the floor with your preschoolers (although older kids like this too) with a soft ball. Throw the ball back and forth and as you are throwing take turns counting or going through the alphabet. Each person says the next letter or number. One of my preschoolers liked this game so much he was counting by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s, by the time he reached kindergarten. You can also shout out colors, animals, shapes, etc. Before you start to throw choose a topic and begin.
Action Words- This is a easy way to introduce verbs. Although your preschooler will not understand that they are learning verbs, this will help lay a foundation for later years. You and your child take turns giving the other an action word to “act out.” This is especially fun for the child because they get to see you act out words too. If you child picks a word that is not a verb, remind them that in this game they need to say doing words. Usually preschoolers don’t have a problem thinking of these words since their whole life is a big verb anyway.
Singing – I am not talking four part harmony here. For our preschoolers we use a few basic songs in the beginning, The Bible Song, Bingo, and Old MacDonald. We break out the instruments and march around the house singing. The kids love playing instruments and also get to work on taking turns, because everyone wants the triangle.
Modified Hopscotch – Draw lowercase letters in boxes on the sidewalk with chalk. Then have your kids jump to each letter you call out. You can also do this with numbers.
Charades, Follow the Leader, Simon Says – These are all great ways to sneak in other preschool skills. We usually play animal charades or something that can help children identify community helpers (mailman, police officer, fireman, etc…) When playing follow the leader have your child work on hopping, skipping, and other gross motor skills. Simon Says can be used to introduce left and right, balance (stand on one foot), and following directions. I cannot stress enough the importance of following directions. Many kids have trouble in school, not because of intelligence, but because they cannot or will not follow directions.

Next week I hope to discuss expectations for preschoolers. While I definitely do not endorse a heavily academic preschool, there are a few skills your preschooler should be working on to prepare them for a successful start in school, at home or elsewhere.

Messy Preschooler Activities

by Toni Herrbach

Do you love to make messes? I don’t, but my preschoolers do. I should have started my preschooler series with this post, but I got a little carried away last week with all my flash card excitement.

One of the hardest lessons I have learned as a mom of preschoolers is that really fun preschool activities can be really, really messy. I have this dream that my house will always be neat and presentable just in case someone stops in our house. For many years this kept me from allowing my preschoolers to do certain crafts and activities because I didn’t want to deal with the mess, and everyone knows that preschoolers don’t clean to the standard of a 30 year old. So before I go on with my preschoolers series, I want all moms of preschoolers to accept a little mess now and again. It is okay, and it can be cleaned up.

Here are some fun and sort of messy activities for preschoolers.

Play-Do- My kids love this stuff. One way to contain the mess is to purchase plastic tablecloths on clearance (after Christmas is a great time to stock up). I put the cloth under the table where they are playing. When they are finished, gather up the tablecloth and shake it into the garbage. The mess will be contained.

You can also use play-do to help with number and letter recognition. Shape the play-do into numbers and letters (lower case) and help your kids identify them. You can also have your kids try and create the numbers and letters themselves. You can also do this with shapes for your younger children. For older kids see if they can spell their name in play do letters.

Inflatable kiddie pool – These pools are small and sell for a dollar at Walmart. Purchase several now so they will last you throughout the year. I then purchased several bags of puffed rice and set up the pool filled with rice in my kitchen. I gave my kids measuring cups, spoons and bowls to play with in the puffed rice. Discovery toys makes a stacking cup set that works well in the rice too. You can help your children measure and figure out how many smaller cups equal a larger cup. They can also just play in the rice. I have also filled the pool up with a small amount of water and let them build ships either out of cardboard, toothpicks, and paper to sail across our lake.

Name practice – Instead of writing their name with crayons or pencils get creative. Take shredded bits of colorful paper and help them write their name with Elmer’s glue. Then have your child put the paper over the glue to spell out their name. Have your child write their name in shaving cream, or put some shaving cream in front of them and have them use their finger to write their name. You can also have them practice in salt, or sugar.

Sugar Cookie Shapes- Use homemade or store bought dough to make cookies in basic shapes. Your preschooler can help you cut out the shapes. When they are done they can help decorate the cookies with colored frosting. Make sure you are repeating the name of the shape as well as the color as they are doing this activity. When you are done take a plate over to a neighbor. Your preschooler will learn about giving as well as their shapes and colors.

Remember, you don’t need to pay an arm and a leg for a high priced curriculum for your preschooler. There are many great activities you can do that use items you already have in your home. Next week I will be talking about great preschool books and toys. If you have a favorite book or toy let me know and I will share it in my next post.

Fun School Project: Bird Feeder Experiment

Reusing Homeschool Books

Boys and Books

School Cubbies

Field Trip Log

Schedules and Reading Lists